Summon Beast

[MrDaniel]

I'm playing a Druid and I'm approaching 3rd level and the opportunity to cast Summon Beast. By the book, our DM does not care about components but cares about gp costs. So I'm looking at: "a feather, tuft of fur, and fish tail inside a gilded acorn worth at least 200 gp".

Now in basic terms, I just need to get the 200gp and gather the rest with a bit of roleplay. For bonus points, our Artificer has the skills to gild an acorn so it would be fun to involve that character.

My questions is this: How the frak do you get a feather, a tuft of fur and a fish tail inside an acorn? How big is this ****ing acorn anyway? They're tiny! And not known for containing more than two seeds. How small is this fish tail?

Also, most acorns are not known as resealable containers. Do I need Druidcraft to "open a seed pod" and then maybe close it again?

(NB: Yes, I am fully aware that I am overthinking this. However, I am having fun doing so.)

[Sherlockpwns]

I always just assumed it meant inside the gilding, so like it’s all gilded together like a terrible paperweight.

Enjoy the beasts of land sea and air regardless. As my father always said, “If you can put a ship in a bottle you can put a fish in an acorn.”

[SpanielBear]

While gilding the components onto the acorn is a possible work around if your DM is cool with it, it’s worth noting that some fish are tiny, especially freshwater fish.

[dafrca]

"a feather, tuft of fur, and fish tail inside a gilded acorn worth at least 200 gp".
[snip]

My questions is this: How the frak do you get a feather, a tuft of fur and a fish tail inside an acorn? How big is this ****ing acorn anyway? They're tiny! And not known for containing more than two seeds. How small is this fish tail?

So just overthinking this a little myself, it does not say those items have to be in their original form. So dry them out and crush them into powder? Or burn them down to ash? or grind them to paste? Then fill the acorn like a deviled egg? Just a crazy thought.

[SharkForce]

fish can be big or small. simply choose a small fish. likewise, feathers can be very small. choose a small feather. you don't even have to choose a flight feather after all; the tiny little floofs that cover most of a bird's body will work just fine, as written.

as for keeping the acorn intact, have you considered that if you saw an acorn open there is only one break, making it suitable for mending? so, you simply saw the acorn open, put the bits inside, mend it, and then gild it.

[KorvinStarmast]

Minnow.
Guppy.
Both are fish.

[JackPhoenix]

Ask whoever is responsible for stuffing Cinderella's dresses inside an acorn (or nuts, depending on version).

[JellyPooga]

Well you're a Druid, so get talking to an oak tree or Animate it and get it to "consume" the tuft, feather and tail by growing the acorn around them on a new bud, compressing the essence of the beasts of land, air and water into the living potential of the oaks' seed. While it does this, water the oak regularly with a gold solution, preferably from a natural source such as a gold-rich panning creek, giving the tree the additional materials needed to incorporate the precious metal into the shell of the acorn, forgoing the requirement to have it gilded independently and unnaturally by some inventive artificier or craftsperson.

When you're done using the acorn as a spellcasting component, cast Awaken on it before planting it in your Druid Grove to grow yourself a Golden Treant Guardian over the next hundred years or two.

[PattThe]

These components should be gotten into the hands of the player by the DM.
Mention it, and look for druids to punk on the road for their components.

For your situation, try finding the sharpest blade in your party and use it to slice it open, hollow it out, and cram em in there. Find the beegest acorn and/or the smallest fish. You're a druid, maybe you can befriend a fey or coax a tree to bear a grand miracle of a slightly larger acorn if you aide it in some way. I guess there's a question if it's Gold Foil or a Gold Acorn.. Regardless, all the Tasha's components for these summon spells have something inside something else. Anyone else in your party looking at these spells later on? My one player gave me basically a year heads up on the spells they wanted at later levels and they got them all by exploring and looting carefully, and not always all together at once.